1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an inkjet recording medium and an inkjet recording method.
2. Description of the Related Art
Supports for inkjet recording media have, in most cases, reiterative patterns of a logo mark that identifies the supplier of the inkjet recording media on the backside surface of the substrate paper of the supports. Suppliers of the substrate paper change print patterns in order to correspond to the logo marks for each supplier of inkjet recording media, who are the purchaser of the substrate paper.
However, while the substrates provided with a logo mark that indicates an original brand of individual camera shops or similar photo-printing service shops, or a logo mark specialized for a campaign period, may be considered to be advantageous for the suppliers in view of developing their individual business strategies, an insufficient use amount (production amount) of such substrates has made provision thereof virtually unrealizable in most cases, in consideration of productivity.
Consequently, it has been considered to be advantageous and has been demanded in view of cost or business strategy to enable individual camera shops or similar photo-printing service shops to print a logo mark of their original brand, or a logo mark specialized for a campaign period, onto their products which have already been provided with an image receiving layer for inkjet recording.
In order to address the above problem, a method has been provided in which printing of a logo mark, which is performed prior to coating a paper substrate with a resin, is carried out by use of an inkjet head having an ink ejecting nozzle array of the entire width perpendicular to a running direction of a web, or by means of an electrophotographic method in which toner is transferred onto a web (see, for example, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open (JP-A) No. 2006-142488).
Further, there have been known a support for inkjet recording media with a back surface having an ability of absorbing ink (see, for example, JP-A Nos. 2005-54308 and 2006-207055) and an inkjet recording medium used for a postcard including a base substrate having one surface thereof coated with a resin (see, for example, JP-A No. 2006-305997).
Further, it has been proposed to include organic spherical particles having an average particle diameter of from 1 to 20 μm in at least one of ink receiving layers provided on each surface of a double-sided inkjet recording sheet (see, for example, JP-A No. 2002-292997).
Further, an inkjet recording material has been known in which a front surface is formed from a coating liquid containing a slight amount of inorganic fine particles having an average diameter of from 1 to 20 μm among inorganic fine particles having a primary particle diameter of from 3 to 30 nm, and a back surface is formed from a resin that improves a static friction coefficient with respect to a metal roller, in order to reduce a friction coefficient between the front surface and the back surface, which is necessary in a process of initial paper supply in a printer, and to improve a static friction coefficient between the back surface and a metal roller, which is necessary in a process of conveying the inkjet recording material while ejecting ink (see, for example, JP-A No. 2003-48373).
However, the technique described in JP-A No. 2006-142488, which is not suited to small-lot production, forces high-cost production on such needs for individual camera shops as printing their original logo marks. The cost would be increased even more if printing of plural kinds of original logo marks in small lots is demanded.
In the techniques described in JP-A Nos. 2005-54308 and 2006-207055, a special operation is required to correct warping of a recording medium that occurs at the time of forming a logo mark due to the nature of cast coat paper used in the recording medium, which makes the process expensive and not suitable for small-lot production. Moreover, there is a fear of causing trouble in conveying the recording medium in an inkjet printer due to a high friction coefficient at each surface of the recording medium.
In the technique described in JP-A No. 2006-305997, inorganic fine particles having a large size used on an address side of the recording medium may cause a slight slippage of a roller during conveying of the recording medium in a printer, resulting in banding (white deletion and print streaks). Moreover, since only one side of the recording medium is coated with a resin, there is a fear of causing curling after formation of a logo mark, or image disorder upon contact with a print head.
In the technique described in JP-A No. 2002-292997, inorganic fine particles of a large size used in an ink receiving layer may degrade a color formation property after ejection of ink. Moreover, since only a friction coefficient at front and back surfaces with another inkjet recording medium is taken into consideration, the accuracy in conveyance at an area onto which ink is to be ejected may be poor and banding may be caused.
In the technique described in JP-A No. 2003-48373, a logo mark cannot be printed on a back side of the inkjet recording medium on which no ink receiving layer is provided. Moreover, density or glossiness of a highly precise image may be lowered due to inorganic fine particles with an average diameter of 1 to 20 μm contained in a surface onto which the image is to be formed.